Wednesday, December 21, 2016

Lots of green things, and happy mail

Deadline met!! Even as I type, this quilt is winging its way to little Maggie in Oregon.

I don't know if this counts as finish #47, since all the others have been small and mini quilts. Should this be included among them?The pattern is Tic Tac Who? by Joanne (Canuckquilter blog). I was a pattern tester, but she hopes to have the pattern available soon--maybe early in the new year! It is well written and was easy to follow. It also includes a dog and a duck block. You can choose which animal you want to use.This upside down photo shows the quilting designs the best--except for the owl, which I hadn't yet quilted. I had to keep the whole thing simple, or it would never have been in the mail in time.This is the largest thing I have quilted for a while, and my shoulder was not happy about it.

I didn't feel like I would have to work that hard to push this crib size quilt under the needle, but tell that to my shoulder. Since I have mostly quilted minis this year, it hasn't been an issue.

When I decided to try Kevin's tree pattern (in a smaller size, of course), I just started cutting 1" strips, and then cutting them down to 1" squares. I had enough squares for 8 trees, and I finally got ONE assembled.

This gives you an idea of the size of the finished tree. I'm pretty sure I won't have seven more of these assembled before Christmas!

Here is what came of those pinwheels I was playing with recently. It is about 9" square. I would think I could get this quilted before Christmas, but if I do count Tic Tac Hoot as #47, this would be #48 and then I would feel pressure to get two more done so that I could say I made 50 little finishes in a year. Can I deal with that kind of pressure on top of everything else going on during the holidays? I guess that remains to be seen.

Now for the happy mail. My delivery person has been one of my favorite people lately.

The beautiful little ornament (it isn't as big as it looks) was made by Grace (citymousequilter blog). It is already on my tree! The wonderful scrap quilt made from orphan blocks is from a dear friend who shall be nameless. It has kept me warm and cozy while curled up with a good book. I won a giveaway for shower tabs from Barb (funwithbarb blog), and she included other goodies and a birthday surprise. I keep forgetting to put a shower tab in my shower, but I am going to put one in the shower right now so it is just there and I can't forget!! And Julie (meandmystitches blog) sent some of the fruits of their labors with their beekeeping. I have to say, these are such cute little things. And the wax has already helped keep my thread smooth and tangle free while binding Tic Tac Hoot!Enough for now. I'm going to be having a very Merry Christmas this week with lots of family time. Whatever you celebrate (and even if you don't), I hope you have a wonderful week!Janet O.

23 comments:

I Love that quilt, so awesome with the Owl as the feature! Cute quilting!! Sorry it gave your shoulder problems. You sure have had some sweet cute gifts in the mailbox! Wishing you happy merry days over the Christmas period and New Year.....be safe and happy! Hugs from your NZ quilting buddy :-)

The owl quilt is adorable and the little recipient will be so fortunate to receive it. You must have had great fun with the arrival of all that mail! Take care of your shoulder...what an annoying thing for anyone and as a quilter with all the motions you make, a real inconvenience to say the least.

That little xs and Os quilt is adorable!! I'll bet she'll treasure that forever! NICE quilting job, Janet! And the piecing looks great, too! I wonder if you can make it in mini size?? JUST KIDDING!Hope you have a wonderful holiday!! Take care of your shoulder!

Little Maggie is going to love her new owl quilt. Such a sweet design and your quilting is perfect to keep it snuggly and soft. Take care of your shoulder, those big quilts just keep getting harder to shove through the machine wit every passing year. May your mail person continue to bring holiday goodies, and may you have a joyful Christmas!

Love your green quilt! I have been quilting on this baby/ mom quilt and it's been awhile since I've had anything very big under my machine needle too! I understand!Love all your lovely gifts. Merry Christmas, friend.

I'm with Karen - you NEED to hit 50 for the year - go - go - GO! I can totally understand why you're lovin' your mail carrier! I've received a lot of packages too, but I paid for almost all of them. LOL Love your little tree - looks super easy to do! Merry Christmas!

I would definitely count the owl quilt as a finish but can you count it as more than one since it's not a mini and that could get you to 50 for the year!? No need for stressing to hit 50 - you should enjoy the rest of the year. Those shower tabs look like a fun gift. I hadn't heard of them but they sound wonderful for a cold...

I was a pattern tester too and think I was the first one to start working on it as I found several errors. Made the owl making difficult and I never did get to making the entire quilt (which I intended to). But I do have the owl block (with a few small boo-boos). Yours turned out really cute!

Sorry to hear that the quilting is aggravating your shoulder. I love your little mini's, but the Christmas trees are just so cute I might be tempted to make one myself....guessing after Christmas at the rate I am going, but who cares! All your gifts are lovely. Have a very Merry Christmas.

The quilt is a gorgeous finish Janet - Maggie will love it - and I'm sure I would count it as #47! Hehe I like Sarah's suggestion, that would really help you out! Kevin's trees are so cute, a good way to use those small green scraps. Your mail deliverer has been really kind to you lately - or is it the sweet people at the other end of the deliverer?! I hope you and your loved ones have a very Merry Christmas xx PS Hope your should settles down quickly.

Merry Christmas to you and yours dear Janet! It looks as though "Santa" has already been very good to you indeed - were you that good a girl? Hahahaha!!! Love the owl quilt - it's perfect! And the simple quilting fits it nicely. I've been planning one of K's trees since I saw them on his site - today may be the day!!!

Love the little owl quilt, even though it was not what I'm used to seeing from you!! Now those teeny tiny Christmas tree blocks... those are you!! Pretty! You received some great gifts! I have started using beeswax too... makes a nice difference huh!? Merry Christmas!!

About Me

My priorities are my faith, family, freedom and fun. I have a wonderful husband, four great grown children and five precious grandchildren. I love to quilt, read, walk, garden, make soap, watch old movies and play Euro-style board games. I am trying to come to terms with gluten-free baking.